The composition was originally written for bass trombone and piano. The piece is symbolic of the St. Louis Arch, professor of music M. Dee Stewart said.
“He wrote it in such a way that it musically reflects the arch,” Stewart said. “The music ends the way it started, because it goes up and back down.”
The Wind Ensemble will perform at 8 p.m. in Auer Hall.
It features conductors Stephen Pratt and Nicholas Waldron and Stewart on bass trombone.
There will be a combination of contemporary and classical pieces at the concert.
“There’s a variety of music in the concert, so people will enjoy all the different aspects of the concert,” Pratt said.
The repertoire also incldes Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “Toccata Marziale (1924),” Gregory Youtz’s “For Those Who Wait (2015),” Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring,” Kenneth D. Froelich’s “Small Messages (2013),” Anton Bruckner’s “Christus Factus Est (1884),” Sigfrid Karg-Elert’s “Nun danket alle Gott — Marche Triomphale, Op. 65 (1906-8)” and Arturo Márquez’s “Conga del Fuego Nuevo (2009, 2011).”
Also a professor of music, Pratt is the chair of the Department of Bands and Wind Conducting in Jacobs School of Music. He said one of the highlights of the concert is Stephenson’s concerto.
Youtz’s piece is also a recent composition and has yet to be performed at the music school.
Music by composers such as Bach and Vaughn Williams will provide a classical element to the concert. Bach’s piece is a famous tune the audience should recognize because it is often played at weddings and during the holidays, Pratt said.
Pratt said people often do not understand what a wind ensemble is because it is not as familiar to them as groups such as orchestras.
“The wind ensemble is made of the finest woodwind, brass and percussion students in the Jacobs School of Music,” Pratt said.
Pratt said his experience working with the Wind Ensemble has been enjoyable due to the musicians’ hard work and talent.
“It’s been a pleasure to go to every rehearsal,” he said.
